Rhineland-Palatinate

Rhineland-Palatinate, Land (state) situated in southwestern Germany. It is bordered by the states of North Rhine–Westphalia to the north, Hessen to the east, Baden-Württemberg to the southeast, and Saarland to the southwest and by France, Luxembourg, and Belgium to the south and west. Its southwestern portion was formerly part of the Rhenish Palatinate, hence the name Rhineland-Palatinate. Its capital is Mainz. Area 7,663 square miles (19,846 square km). Pop. (2011) 3,989,808.

Geography

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The northern portion of the state consists of woodlands and cultivated fields that are crossed by deeply eroded river valleys. The state, which is part of the Rhine Massif, has an average elevation of between 1,300 and 1,900 feet (400 and 600 metres). The Rhine River crosses the region from the southeast to the northwest and receives the Moselle (German: Mosel) River from the southwest and the Lahn River from the northeast. The rivers effectively create four distinct regions in the northern two-thirds of the state: the Hunsrück, the Taunus, the Eifel, and the Westerwald. Rising south of the Moselle River, the undulating Hunsrück Plateau forms the most southerly section of the uplands. It has been cleared of much of its natural deciduous forest and is used for cattle raising. The Rhine River divides the Hunsrück from the very similar Taunus Plateau to the east. North and west of the Moselle and Rhine valleys, the Neuwied Basin and Maifeld form a transition to the wooded upland of the Eifel, which averages 2,000 feet (600 metres) in elevation. The Eifel landscape is dotted with funnel-shaped volcanic craters, most of which are filled by small scenic lakes. To the northeast is the rolling plateau of the Westerwald, which is composed mainly of slate with some higher, rounded basalt hills. The Westerwald is bounded to the north by the highly industrialized Sieg River valley.

The state’s southwestern portion, which is bordered on the north by the Nahe River, is broken by the Saar-Nahe Mountains and the escarpments of the Pfälzer Forest (Pfälzerwald). Open cultivated areas alternate with large wooded areas. In contrast, the southeast contains the treeless Rhein-Hesse Plateau and the Rhine River valley. The plateau is covered by loess, while the valley contains fertile alluvial soils.

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At Mainz the average annual temperature is in the low 50s F (about 10 °C), and the average yearly rainfall is about 20 inches (500 mm). Regional variations occur, however: the northwestern part of the Eifel has an average annual temperature in the low 40s F (about 6 °C) and an average annual rainfall of about 30 inches (750 mm).

Although the majority of the population is of Frankish descent, the turbulent history of Rhineland-Palatinate has produced a complex social structure that includes French and Italian influences. Several hundred thousand refugees migrated from central and eastern Germany at the close of World War II. The state’s more recent immigrants are primarily foreign workers from Italy, France, Turkey, Spain, and the Balkan states, who enter via the surrounding German states. The majority of the people are Roman Catholic, and the remainder are Protestant. The most important cities are Mainz, Ludwigshafen, Koblenz, Trier, Kaiserslautern, Worms, Pirmasens, and Neustadt an der Weinstrasse.

For much of the post-World War II period, Rhineland-Palatinate was one of the poorest states of West Germany. In the late 20th century, however, its rate of economic growth was higher than that of the rest of Germany. The total gross domestic product (GDP) of the state is derived from several sources, with manufacturing the largest source, followed by services, commerce, transportation, and agriculture.

In the most fertile agricultural regions of the Neuwied Basin, Bitburg, Rheinhessen, and the eastern Palatinate, potatoes, cereals, and sugar beets are the primary crops. In the less fertile highlands, however, stock farming is more important. The state is known for the many specialized crops of its river valleys. Viticulture occupies a predominant place in the agriculture of the state, and the famous vineyards along the Rhine, Moselle, and Nahe rivers are the source of most of Germany’s wines. The growing of fruit and tobacco is also of considerable importance.

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The state’s largest industries are chemical manufacturing in Ludwigshafen, Ingelheim am Rhein, and Mainz and the machinery industry in Frankenthal and Kaiserslautern. A large proportion of the country’s shoes are produced in Pirmasens, and most of Germany’s trade in precious stones is carried on in the town of Idar-Oberstein. The Kannenbäcker region of the Westerwald is famous for its pottery.

Mainz, situated on the west bank of the Rhine opposite the mouth of the Main River, is an important transportation junction. The most important transportation routes are the navigable waterways of the Rhine and the Moselle. The main railways follow the Rhine valley, and the primary highways also run from north to south. An improved road network in the Eifel upland, traditionally one of Germany’s poorest and most remote regions, has increased tourism and made commuting to the fringes of the more industrialized areas possible.

Representatives are popularly elected to the state parliament, the Landtag. The Landtag elects a prime minister. Under the state’s judicial system, civil and criminal cases are tried by the provincial court of appeal and the county courts.

An important tourist industry has developed in the middle Rhine area, which is famous for its small picturesque wine villages, terraced vineyards, and castle ruins atop steep hillsides. The famous Deutsche Weinstrasse (German Wine Highway) tours the small towns of the Rhine valley. The state’s rich cultural tradition is reflected in the cathedrals at Speyer (designated a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1981), Worms, and Mainz. The many museums include the Historical Museum of the Palatinate in Speyer, the State Museum of the Rhine in Trier, and the Roman-Germanic Central Museum and the World Museum of the Art of Printing in Mainz. In Trier several Roman monuments as well as the Cathedral of St. Peter and the Church of Our Lady were designated UNESCO World Heritage sites in 1986. The Upper Middle Rhine Valley World Heritage site (2002), between the cities of Bingen and Koblenz, includes vineyards, historic towns and villages, and some 40 castles and fortresses. In addition, part of the Frontiers of the Roman Empire: Upper German–Raetian Limes World Heritage site (2005) is located in Rhineland-Palatinate. Among the traditional festivals that take place annually is the pre-Lenten carnival in Mainz. There are universities at Mainz (Johannes Gutenberg University), Trier, Kaiserslautern, and Koblenz-Landau.